Towing system for canal-boats.



- Patented Sept. l9, I899. L. P. PEREW. TOWING SYSTEM FOR CANAL BOATS.

(Applicatiup filed. June' 15, 1898.)

2 Sheets-Sheet (No Model.)

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Patented Sept. l9, I899. V L. P. PEBEW.- TOWING SYSTEM FOR CANAL BOATS.

(Application filed June 15. 189B.)

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES- PATENT Fries.

LOUIS PHILIP PERE W, OF TONAVANDA, NElV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO HELEN E.

PEREYV, OF SAME PLACE.

TOWING SYSTEM FOR CANAL-BOATS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 633,294, datedSeptember 19, 1899. Application filed June 15,1898- Serial No. 683,457.(No model.)

To 00% whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, LOUIS PHILIP PEREW, a citizen of the United States,residing at Tonawanda, in the county of Erie and State of New York, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Towing Systems for Canal-Boats,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a system or apparatus for towing boats oncanals or other watercourses, and more particularly to a system in whichthe boats are towed by electric-motor cars running upon tracks extendingalong the tow or heel path of the canal and in which two independentseries of motor-cars are employed, one series running in one directionand towing the up boats, for instance, and the other series running inthe opposite direction and towing the down boats.

The tracks for the motor-ears are laid side by. side along the canal,and each track comprises a surface rail and an elevated rail, the carshaving upper and lower guide-wheels which run on said rails,respectively.

The principal objects of my invention are to provide a compact towingsystem which does not interfere with the use of animals for towing theboats, which materially reduces the cost of transportation, and whichpermits oppositely-moving boats to pass each other without the necessityof transferring the tow-- ing-lines from one motor-car to another,whichis necessary when all of the ears run on a single track, thus insuring amore rapid transit of the boats. 7 Other objects of the invention are toso arrange the elevated guide-rails of the motor or towing cars that thetowing-lines connected with the cars which run on the outer track clearthe elevated rail of the inner track, so as to prevent wear of the linesby contact with said rail, to provide the motor-cars with means wherebythey are reliably retained on the track, and also to so organize thesystem that any of the motor-cars can be readily switched off the maintrack While loading and I unloading boats and for other purposes.

In the accompanying drawings, consisting of two sheets, Figure l is acentral longitudinal section of a watercourse equipped with my improvedtowing system.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse section in line 3 3, Fig. 2. Fig. i isan enlarged top plan view of a portion of the track system, showing anelevated switch. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section of the track system,taken between the surface'and elevated tracks andshowing a surfaceswitch. Fig. (5 is an enlarged side elevation of a portion of the tracksystem. Fig. 7 is a transverse section in line 7 7, Fig. o.

Like letters of reference refer to like parts in the several figures.

A A represent the lower or surface rails, arranged side by side on thesame side of the canal or watercourse, and B B the elevated rails,arranged directly over the surface rails. When the 'rails are placed onthe tow-path, they are located along the outer portion thereof, so asnot to interfere with the use of animals for towing the boats. Thesurface rails are mounted on suitable ties or stringers, and theelevated rails B B are supported by a suitable trestle or elevatedframework having the necessary strength and stability. The supportsshown in the drawings consist of transverse standards 0, provided attheir lower ends with oppositely-extending legs or feet a, which aresecured to the ties, and at their upper ends with oppositely-extendingarms 0, which carry the elevated rails B B, as most clearly shown inFig. 3.

D represents one of the towing or motor cars which run on the outertrack A B, and D one of the motor-cars which run on the inner track AB,the ears on one track towing the up boats and those on the other trackthe down boats. A sufficient number of such cars is employed to meet therequirements of the traffic. Each of these cars is provided with groovedupper and lower rollers e e, which run, respectively, on the elevatedand surface rails, and whereby the car is supported and guided on therails,and each carcarries a motor F, preferably an electric motor, ofsufficient power to drive the car and tow a number of canal-boatsconnected with the car. The electric motor may be of any approved orWell known construction and receives power from an overhead wire orconductor 9 through a trolley-wheel g and arm 9 similar to thoseemployed on street-ear trolley systems. A wire or conductor g isarranged above each series of motor-cars and suspended from the arms ofthe standards 0. In order to positivelydrive the motor-cars, each carisprovided with a toothed traction-wheel h, which meshes with a toothedtraction-rail or horizontal gear-rack II, arranged parallel with therails, and which in turn meshes with a pinion h on the motor-shaft. Oneof such racks is provided for each series of cars, as shown. Eachmotor-car is provided with a suitable switch or controller, which isoperated by an attendant or motorman stationed on the car and which isnot shown in the drawings, and with a roof or canopy g for shelteringthe motorman, the trolley-pole being preferably attached to this canopy,as shown.

I I represent two canal-boats running in opposite directions, and i t"are the tow-lines which connect these boats with the n1otorcars D D,respectively, the lines being preferably attached to the cars about on alevel w h the upper guide-wheels of the cars, as shown. When the up anddown boats are towed in this manner by independent cars running onseparate tracks on the same side of the canal, the tow-lines attached tothe cars on the outer track will rub against the elevated rail of theinner track if the elevated rails of both tracks are of the same height.To prevent this rubbing and consequent wear of the tow-lines, the innerelevated rail 1) is arranged so much lower than the outer elevated railthat at the ordinary angle assumed by the tow-lines attached to theouter series of cars said lines willclear the inner elevated rail, asshown by dotted lines in Fig. 3. When oppositely-moving boats pass eachother, the inner motor-car must pass underneath the tow-line attached tothe outer car, and in order to facilitate this the cars are provided ontheir upper portions with horizontal guardsj, which extend above theupper rollers c of the car and terminate at both ends indownwardly-curved horns j, the ends or noses of which dip below theelevated rails, so as to pass under a tow-line extending across the lowrail and keep the line clear of all parts of the car against which it isliable to catch, as shown by full lines in Fig. 3.

The tow-path is not always located on one side of the canal from oneterminus to the other, but extends along one side thereof between somepoints and along the opposite side between other points, bridges beingprovided at the places where the tow-path shifts from one side to theother for the passage of the animals and towing-cars. In such cases thetwo tracks of my improved towing system are extended across the bridgesto and along the opposite side of the canal, the tracks being located atone side of the bridge, as shown in Fig. 2, to avoid interference withanimals when these are also used for towing. At the places where thetow-path shit" ts to the opposite side of the canal the car-tracks afterpassing over the bridge extend down the inclined embankment on one sideof the bridge, and

thence under the bridge in the form of a loop of comparatively largeradiussay eighteen feet-after which the tracks continue along the sameside of the canal to the next shifting-point of the tow-path, as shownin Fi 2, when they again cross a bridge to the op posite side of thecanal, and so on throughout the length of the waterway. Owing to thisshifting of the tow-path that elevated rail which is the outer rail onone side of the canal becomes the inner rail on the opposite side of thecanal, and in order to preserve the relative heights of these'railstheir arrangement as to height must be reversedthat is, the rail whichis the high rail on the firstnamed side of the canal being now the innerrail must be placed below the plane of the outer rail which on the otherside of the canal is the low inner rail. This change in the height ofthe two rails is gradual and the inclination of the rails necessary toeifect this changing or merging of same from the high to the lowaltitude, and vice versa, preferably takes place at the loop in thetracks above described.

In order to enable the upper guide-wheels e of the motor-cars to adjustthemselves to the varying distances between the upper and lower railsdue to this shifting of the towpath, said guide-wheels are mounted onvertically-movable supports or parts of the car, which permit the wheelsto rise and fall for following the variations in the height of therails, so as to remain at all times in engagement with the same. In theconstruction shown in the drawings this is accomplished by making theguard or top portionj of each motor-car vertically movable on the lowerportion thereof by means of upright bars or stems It, secured at theirupper ends to said guard and sliding in vertical sockets or ways It,arranged on the lower portion of the car, forming a telescopicconnection between the upper and lower parts of the car, as shown in theleft-hand portion of Fig. When the car passes from a high to a lowsection of the elevated rail, its upper guide-wheels are free to descendby gravity for remaining in contact with the rail, and when the carpasses from a low to a high section of the rail the telescopicconnection between the upper and lower portions of the car permits thenecessary rise or extension of the upper portion to always keep saidguideqvheels against the rail. Ifdesired,suitably-appliedspringsmay beemployed for lowering the top portion of the car when the latter passesfrom a high to a low section of the elevated rail.

Each motor-car is provided on its upper portion with horizontalretaining-rollers Z, which run against opposite sides of the adjacentelevated rail, as shown in Fig. 3, so as to prevent the cars from beingderailed by the lateral strain exerted by the towing-lines. This strainis considerable when the boats pass around a bend of the canal, wherethey are liable to drift out of their course, or when they are caused todrift away from the towpath by the force of the wind. Theretaining-rollers Z resist such strains and effectually prevent the carsfrom being pulled from the rails under such conditions. Only thatretaining-roller of the car which runs against the outer side of therail resists the tendency of the towed boat to pull the car off thetrack; but when a car by reason of the shifting of the tow-path passesfrom one side of the canal to the other its position with reference tothe canal is reversed, which brings said retaining-roller on the frontor inner side of the rail, and it is therefore necessary to provide thecar with two such rollers, one on each side of the rail, in order tokeep the car on the rails on both sides of the canal. Theretaining-rollers are carried by the guard or upper portion j of thecar. This reversal of the car also renders it necessary to provide thecar with hooks or attachments for the tow-lines on both sides of thecar, as shown in Fig. 3, so that the line can always be attached to theside of the car which faces the canal. These attachments may consist ofeyes or perforated arms Z, projecting from opposite sides of the guardor top portion. of the car.

As the motor-cars of then p and down boats in my improved towing systemrun on independent tracks, no transferring of the towing-lines isrequired when two oppositelymoving boats pass each other, as isnecessary when the towing-cars of both the up and down boats run on thesame track, thus avoiding the delays and loss of headway of the boatsincident to transferring the lines and permitting a more rapid transitof the boats and enabling them .to make a greater number of trips in aseason. When two oppositely-moving boats or groups of boats meet, thelines of the boat or boats connected with the motor'cars on the innertrack are slackened to permit the other boat or boats to pass over thesame in the same manner in the well-known animal towing system; When amotor-car passes over a bridge, the towingline slackens and is carriedover and under the bridge to the opposite side of the canal, as in theanimal towing system, so that the boats lose no headway, but continue ontheir coursewithoutintcrruption. Thetracksand 'the elevated frameworkare very compact,

occupying a space not exceeding three feet in width on the outer portionof the tow-path, sov that the system does not interfere with theordinary system of towing by animals, while the arrangement of the innerelevated rail below the plane of the outer rail permits the use of bothtracks on the same side of the canal without rapidly wearing out thetowlines attached to the motor-cars on the outer track, which wouldoccur if the elevated rails of both tracks were placed at the sameheight.

-The extensible or telescopic construction of the motor-cars permits thesame to adjust themselves automatically to the varyin g dist-ancesbetween the surface and elevated rails in followin'ga shifting tow-pathfrom one side of the canal to the other.

In order to permit drays or other conveyances to cross the tracks andpass under the elevated rails of the system at points where the boatsare loaded and unloaded, the elevated rails are raised sufficiently atsuch points, as shown at B in Figs. 1 and 6. The extensible constructionof the motor-cars permits the upper guide-wheels to remain in contactwith the overhead rails at these elevated places. At such stopping orunloading points it is necessary to leavethe tracks'unobstructed toallow the towing-cars of other boats to pass without delay, and for thispurpose a side track is provided at each of these places, so that thecar of a boat which is being loaded or unloaded can be temporarilyswitched upon the siding.

Referring to Fig. 5, m m represent the surface rails of two adjacentside tracks. on is a horizontally-swinging switch rail or tongue formingnormally a portion of the outer surface rail of the main track andadapted to be swung in line with the corresponding rail m of the sidetrack, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 5, for switching a car upon thesiding. m is a similar switch-rail included in the inner surface rail ofthe main track and adapted to be swung in line with a curvedrail-section we, secured between the two main surface tracks. andforming a continuation of the inner surface rail of the siding.

n n, Fig. 4, represent the elevated rails of the siding arrangeddirectly over the surface rails 'm m, and n is a horizontally-swingingswitch-rail forming normally a portion of the main outer elevated rail Band adapted to be swung in line with the corresponding elevated rail 01,of the siding, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 4, for switching a carupon the siding. n is a similar switch-rail included in the main innerelevated rail B and adapted to be swung in line with a curvedrail-section n, which latter is arranged between the two main elevatedrails and adapted to form a continuation. of the inner elevated rail 11of the siding, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 4. This curvedrail-section in its normal position is arranged directly over and in thesame position as the corresponding rail-section m between the mainsurface rails A A, but instead of being fixed, like the rail-section m,it is movable, so that it can be swung into a position in which itclears the superstructure of cars running on the main tracks, it beingclear from an inspection of Fig. 7 (where the normal position of saidrail-section is shown by dotted lines) that said rail-section wouldotherwise stand in the way of the trolley-poles and telescopic stems 7c7a of cars running on the main tracks. I11 the construction shown in thedrawings said rail-section is pivoted between its ends to the adjacentstandard 0, as shown at or, so that itcanbe swung substantially parallelwith the main elevated rails when not in use, as shown by full lines inFig. 4, or be swung into the normal dotted position shown in the samefigure when it is desired to switch a car upon the siding.

As the gear-racks H are somewhat elevated, it is necessary to make theportions thereof immediately over the curved rail-section m movable, sothat the same can be moved out of the way to permit a car on the innermain track to pass upon the siding. For this purpose the adjacentportions or sections h2 of the gear-racks are each hinged or mounted atone end on a horizontal pivot 0, so that they can be swung upward out ofthe way, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 0.

It will now be understood that when it is desired to run a car from theouter main track upon the corresponding siding, or vice versa, it isonly necessary to shift the upper and lower switch-rails m n into thedotted position shown in Figs. 4 and 5, while when a car is to beswitched from the inner main track to the corresponding siding, or viceversa, the switch-rail 'm of the surface rail is shifted to the dottedposition shown in Fig. 5, the pivoted rail-section n is swung in linewith the corresponding elevated rail of the siding, and the switch-railn is swung in line with said rail-section, as shown by dotted lines inFig. 4, and the hinged sections of the gear-racks are swung up to theposition shown by dotted lines in Fig. 6.

Each of the elevated switch-rails and the pivoted rail-section n carriesa section of the conductor-wire g, as shown in Figs. 1 and 6. Thesurface rails of the main and side tracks are electrically connectedtogether by wires, as is common in trolley systems, these wires notbeing shown in the drawings.

The gear-racks H preferably extend only along the main tracks, and inorder to furnish the necessary power for propelling the towing-cars fromthe main tracks to the siding, and vice versa, each car is provided withsuitable driving and clutch mechanism, whereby power may be transmittedfrom its electric motor either to its toothed tractionwheel h forpropelling the car along the main track or to one of itssupporting-wheels for propelling the car upon the siding by the frictionof said wheel against the surface rail. In the construction shown in thedrawings the axle of said supporting-wheel is provided with asprocket-wheelp, connected by a chain 1) with a sprocket-wheel 19 whichis normally loose on the motor-shaft. The pinion h is also normallyloose on the motor-shaft, and either this pinion or the loosesprocket-wheel p is placed in gear with the motor-shaft by a slidingclutch q, splined on the shaft and operated by a hand-lever q.

I claim as my invention 1. In a towing system, the combination with twosurface tracks arranged side by side on the same side of the waterway,of independent towing-cars arranged to run upon said tracks in oppositedirections,and towing connections which are attached, respectively,lower to the car nearest the watercourse than to the car on the outertrack, to clear each other when the cars pass each other, substantiallyas set forth.

2. In a towing system, a pair of independent elevated tracks arrangedside by side along one side of the watercourse, the inner track or thatnearest the watercourse being arranged below the plane of the outertrack, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination with two independent surface tracks arranged side byside on one side of the watercourse, of two elevated tracks arrangedover said surface tracks, respectively, the innerelevated track or thatnearest the watercourse being lower than the other elevated track, andtwo independent series of towing-cars running upon said inner and outersets of tracks, each of said cars having lower wheels which run upon oneof said surface tracks and upper wheels which run against thecorresponding elevated track, substantially as set forth.

4. In a towing system, the combination with two independent surfacetracks arranged side by side along the watercourse and both extendingfrom one side of the watercourse over a bridge thereof to and along theother side of the watercourse, of elevated tracks arranged over andfollowing the line of said surface tracks, the inner elevated track orthat nearest the watercourse being lower than the other elevated trackon both sides of the watercourse, substantially as set forth.

5. In a towing system, the combination with two independent surfacetracks arranged side by side along the watercourse and both extendingfrom one side of the watercourse over a bridge thereof to and along theother side of the watercourse, of elevated tracks arranged over andfollowing the line of said surface tracks, the inner elevated track orthat nearest the Watercourse being lower than the other elevated trackon both sides of the watercourse, and towing-cars running on said setsof tracks and each having lower wheels which run upon one of saidsurface tracks and upper guide-wheels which run against thecorresponding elevated track and which are capable of moving verticallyon the car for adapting themselves to the varying altitude of theelevated tracks, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination with asurface track, of an elevated track arrangedover said surface track and at varying distances from the same, and atowing or motor car composed of a lower portion having wheels which runupon said surface track and an upper portion which is vertically movableon the lower portion of the car and is provided with upper guide-wheelswhich run against said elevated track, substantially as set forth.

7. In a towing system, a towing-car composed of a lower portion havingwheels adapted to run on a surface track, a vertically-movable upperportion carrying guide-Wheels adapted to run against an elevated trackarranged over said surface track and a sliding connection whereby theupper portion of the car is guided on the lower portion thereof,substantially as set forth.

8. In atowing system, a'inotor-ear provided on its upper portion withguide-Wheels adapted to engage with an elevated track, and a horizontalguard extending along the top of the car whereby the towinglines arekept clear of said guide-Wheels, substantially as set forth.

9. In a towing system, a motor-car provided on its upper portion withguide-Wheels adapted to engage with an elevated track, and a horizontalguard extending along the top of' the car and projecting above saidguidewheels and terminating atboth ends in horns which are arranged toextend belowthe level of the elevated track, substantially as set forth.

10. In a towing system,a motor-car provided at its top with avertically-movable guardand guide-wheels journaled on said guard belowthe upper surface thereof and adapted to engage With an elevated trackextending along the watercourse, substantially as set forth.

11. The combination with a surface track and an elevated trackarrangedover the same, of a towing-car having upper and lower Wheels runningupon said surface and elevated tracks, respectively, and provided with avertically-movable upper portion which carries an attachment for atowing-line, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 4th day of June, 1898.

LOUIS PHILIP PEREW.

Witnesses:

CARL F. GEYER, THEO. L. PoPP.

